


the pack survives

by julesmpm



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Family, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, during 8x6, my heart is hearting, the pack survives, the stark siblings love each other
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-05-22
Updated: 2019-05-22
Packaged: 2020-03-09 13:04:55
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 508
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18917608
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/julesmpm/pseuds/julesmpm
Summary: It’s been so long since they’ve left each other that she’s forgotten how much separation makes her chest ache.





	the pack survives

**Author's Note:**

> A teeny little follow up to the farewell scene in 8x06.

They watch collectively as Jon sails from the dock, and she can feel Sansa’s hand move to join hers atop their brother’s wheelchair.

 

She sniffs, wipes her eyes hastily with her free hand.

 

It’s been so long since they’ve left each other that she’s forgotten how much separation makes her chest ache.

 

“West of Westeros, then?” Her sister’s voice is gentle, and she turns towards her, smiling sheepishly.

 

“I’ve been meaning to mention it.” There’s a pang of guilt there; Sansa going back to Winterfell alone is something that’s constantly been at the back of her mind.

 

She knows what the halls of the North have held for her sister, and there’s a part of her that wants to go back and protect her and their home until she grows old and grey.

 

But her sister doesn’t need her protection, at least not at the moment, and the sea is calling her; has been since before her list was complete.

 

“I think it’s a wonderful idea.” Sansa smiles too, and Arya feels like crying all over again. “If anyone has the qualifications to discover the new world, it’d be you.”

 

There’s a pause, and her sister pulls her into her chest, holds her tightly against her corseted body.

 

She inhales deeply, lets Sansa’s arms keep her close and wraps her own around her sister’s waist.

 

It hits her with still and sudden force that she has no idea when the next time the four of them will be together again.

 

Hells, she has no idea if they’ll ever get that chance in their lifetime.

 

Sansa’s shoulders are shaking, and she knows that her own tears are falling silently from her cheeks to her chin.

 

It’s an ache like no other.

 

There was a long period of time when Arya thought she’d never see her siblings again.

 

And then, when they were reunited, she thought they’d never leave each other again.

 

Yet here they stand.

 

Perhaps she had been foolish to believe that they would ever share the same home again.

 

She feels Bran’s hand on hers, and she turns to him, still wrapped in Sansa’s warm embrace.

 

“You’re going to be a wonderful King.” He smiles his wan, knowing smile, and she tries to match it with her own watery one.

 

“We’ll see each other again, someday.” His response stings, pulls on the edges of her heart, and it urges her to squeeze his hand in hers, intertwining the remaining Starks as one.

 

“Of course we will.” Her sister’s voice is thick with her tears, and she makes a point of tightening her grip around Sansa, too.

 

She doesn’t ask her how she knows it to be true; she just chooses to believe that her sister is right. She’s made quite a habit of it, as of late.

 

The wind blows from the sea, and their cloaks ripple and their hair tosses but they stay, woven together, each holding the other so tightly they could burst.

 

They may not know about tomorrow, but today, they have each other.

**Author's Note:**

> My heart is aching from the finale for MANY reasons, but that scene where the Starks bid farewell to Jon? Absolutely broke my heart in two. Arya Stark crying? Catch me bawling like a baby.
> 
> xoxo


End file.
